The Office Strategy In Your Dental Practice

Do you have a plan or office strategy to get new ideas in motion for your dental practice in 2016? Are you using the great untapped ideas your dental team has to help your practice? What have you done to accomplish your goals so far in 2016? What can you as the doctor and your dental team do to pull together to make your dental practice a better business and experience for patients?

Often, as I coach, I find that many offices don't have any plans at all. They just let the days, weeks and months happen! No sooner does a new year start then they find themselves in December and wonder where the time went! I use an analogy with my teams to illustrate this point. I say, "Let's say I go skeet shooting. If the clay doesn't come out, then what am I aiming for?" They say, "NOTHING"! And, they are RIGHT! Well, if we don't have a plan or a focus for your office, what are you aiming for?

Let's say you want to increase the number of crowns being converted or have more Invisalign cases being accepted. How do you get your team motivated to make these changes so it doesn't just feel like "more work" to them? We suggest you incentivize them! It will bring about positive change. For example, for each same day crown conversion that is done, the person who converts that treatment gets $5 or $10 bucks! Just try it if you don't believe me...I've seen it work many times over. I have offices rotate these incentives to best work for what is needed in the office. Make it beneficial for the office and not just an expectation of the same bonus for the team!

What efforts have been made in the past for your office? Who was instrumental for those changes to be implemented? Who held the office back from making necessary changes? Make sure your office knows your vision for the practice. Making a mission statement and posting it for your team and patients to see will let everyone KNOW what your vision for your practice is!

What processes are in place at your office? The processes for getting patients to schedule or accept treatment are important. Are they working now? Were they working before? What's changed; is it the person doing it or are the processes not being followed regularly? We need to look at key moments in the process to find out where it is lacking. Use the scripts that your coaches gave you to help everyone become more systematic about the processes.

What can you do in your practice to be outstanding from the rest? Is it in service? Technology? Time management? How can you stand out from the rest of the dentists in your town? Find the ways you are excellent at what you do and market that! It doesn't have to be over the top. Some times the most obvious idea is the most excellent.

Contact your coaches if you want any elaboration on any of these ideas! They will help you make 2016 your most stellar year! Be intentional about your office growth! HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY!